Do away with dependency syndrome to get ahead in your career

When every year starts, most people make resolutions. The most common resolutions have to do with career advancement ambitions and targets. Sadly, only a few of us follow through these great intentions and goals we set for ourselves. We end up putting the fate of our careers to the government, our employers, friends, parents, or other relatives. Year in, and year out, we continue with the same trend. This is known as dependency syndrome.

dependency syndrome

Dependency syndrome is a personality trait involving enduring patterns of perceiving, relating, and thinking about one’s environment in a wide range of social and personal contexts. We appreciate that we are social beings and we need each other for survival. However, people should transition from dependency to independence and interdependence for healthy growth. It is essential for anyone who wishes to succeed in life to have a mind of their own.

How do you tell if you are suffering from dependency syndrome? As college students, we can depend on sites like homeworkdoer for assistance with our assignments. As graduates, we can depend on our parents or guardians for our day-to-day upkeep before we get on our feet. This is dangerous as it may develop a dependency trait that may even make us fear applying or interviewing for jobs because we believe we would need assistance to get them. Some people even go to the extent of voluntarily failing interviews, quit, or mismanaging jobs so that they can solely depend on their spouses or parents.

These peoples severely need to evaluate the purpose of their career life.

There are several factors that contribute to the development of dependency. The most common one is the fear of growing up. Many people with failed careers have the childish wish of being taken care of. They have all kinds of excuses to ensure they remain jobless and economically dependent on others.

Parents who are overbearing clip the minds of their children, unknowingly creating grownups who live in their parent’s shadows, having no identity of their own. Other causes of dependency syndrome are laziness and low self-esteem.

Dependency is devastating to both the caregiver and the victim affected by it. The victims suffer from apathy and have no energy and interest in their personal development or the development of others. The majority of the victims end up resorting to crime, substance abuse and alcoholism to fill in the glaring gap in their lives. The lack of attainment of their career goals rises resentment, depression, and in severe situations, even suicide.

A country whose majority of its youth is suffering from dependency is doomed and set to fail because it will be deprived of its workforce shortly. How, then, do we ensure we get rid of dependency syndrome?

The first step is for governments to foster educational institutions that have career counselors available to students at all times. Constantly evaluating and reinforcing the career development spirit of students is the only way to keep them on track and interested in developing their careers.

Another essential strategy is for institutions and organizations to offer mentorship programs to aspiring professionals. Spending time with people who are already successful in a particular field is inspiring to students and graduates younger in their career. The final thing is for parents to respect and let their children follow their interests. Many people stagnate in their careers because they got into fields that they were not interested in from the beginning. Some guardians make their children study courses and follow career paths that they do not want. This is detrimental to the self-esteem and motivation of individuals, making them work half-heartedly.

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